Article 45/2021

Labour Edge

With reference to Jacobson v Vitalab (2019) 30 SALLR 175 (LC), what is the test to be met to succeed in raising an exception:

In order to succeed, the excipient must necessarily persuade the court that, on every interpretation the pleading in question can reasonably bear, no cause of action is disclosed (First National Bank of Southern Africa Ltd v Perry NO 2001 (3) SA 960 (SCA)). Care must be taken to distinguish the facts which must be proved in order to disclose a cause of action from the evidence necessary to prove them. The determination of the latter, in each particular case, is essentially a matter of substantive law rather than procedure (Alphedie Investments (Pty) Ltd v Greentops (Pty) Ltd 1975 (1) SA 161 (T)).

March 21, 2025

In the scenario where an employer has embarked upon an organisational restructuring exercise and, as part of such exercise, is attempting to adjust and streamline roles and positions that have the consequence that certain jobs are made
redundant, and the employer requires the employees who held such jobs to compete for new jobs in a new organigram, what are some of the important principles governing this scenario?

March 18, 2025

How are medical certificates to be dealt with in the absence of affidavits from doctors or evidence given by doctors who issued such medical certificates?

March 10, 2025

What is an employer to do when it suspects that a medical practitioner is issuing pre- signed sick notes, or permitting its employees to buy sick notes, or, alternatively, is engaging in some other dubious practice regarding the issue of sick notes? What is an employer to do when it suspects that a person is not entitled to practice as a medical doctor?